Author: Tanvi Sunkireddy Major: Supply Chain Management Country: Mozambique Program: Service Learning through Community Partnership in Mozambique
When I heard Dr. Farmer speaking of this study abroad program in Mozambique, I was intrigued. I had never even consider going to Africa for school, much less Mozambique. This specific program was so unique because instead of learning in a classroom we had the opportunity to learn from a company that was actually in practice. As a freshman, opportunities for exposure to current, real world business issues were slim to none. In a classroom we usually only learn how businesses work in developed countries like the US; I realized in a less developed country like Mozambique, the culture paired with the economy had to have an impact on how businesses are run there. I knew that I would probably have very few chances to go to a developing country to learn about business. I applied to this program because I knew it could grant me knowledge of a real-life business in a third world country. This class gave me six hours of 230V credit that I could put towards my major Supply Chain Management.
During the program we worked with a vertically integrated poultry farm named Novos Horizontes. My team was responsible for investigating the input and output process for Novos Horizontes. We accomplished this by asking questions to general managers and other employees of each department. I got to learn about how a poultry farm works, and what a chicken needs to be like in order for it to be deemed meat. Their documentation process for all incoming and outgoing products was taken note of and presented at the end of our stay in Mozambique. Throughout this process I learned a lot about the various challenges a business in Mozambique must face due to the state of infrastructure within the company as well as the impact culture has on business. For example, because of a power cut the freezers in the storage unit could stop working. This could cause a lot of poultry to go bad and in extreme cases stop production. It is difficult to quantify all these unpredictable factors and therefore this has a costly impact on the company’s ability to produce meat.
On the weekends we were able to go on trips to further explore the country. The first weekend there I went on a hike on a mountain we dubbed “Woo Pig Mountain”. It was hands down the most strenuous hike I have ever done. It took seven hours, 3 bottles of water, many breaks, and a lot of sweat. At one point the trail had ended and we were literally hacking our way through the bush to get to the top. It was definitely not a stroll in the park. On our journey up Woo Pig Mountain we saw some farmers trek up and down to get some of their crops to town to put up for sale. These farmers grow crops on the mountain because the land is more fertile compared to the ground. When we were talking to them, they asked us why we were there and balked when we said we wanted to see the view at the top. The view was wonderful and totally worth it however, the locals put so much into climbing the mountain every day out of necessity. This became a recurring theme in most people I met in Mozambique. They all put 110% into their jobs in order to provide for themselves and their family. It is truly an admirable effort and has inspired me to be more active in my own life. Whether it be academically, socially, or professionally I have a new perspective on what it means to strive to my best ability.
I would definitely recommend this program to other students. Not only do you get to learn a lot about business to further your academic knowledge and culture to further your world-views, you get to forge bonds with the peers and faculty that go with you as well as the translators and business executives you will meet in Nampula.